I go every other year pretty much, are you planning on attending as an exhibitor or a trade visitor?
As a trade visitor I use medica to meet with a large number of my existing suppliers; my recommendations for this are:
1. Schedule a meeting time with them (if you don't and they are busy you will be wasting time)
2. Consider their location and try to group meetings together - you don't want to be walking back and forth across the entire centre
I tend to give some time to wander around to identify new suppliers, when doing so, in advance pick which halls are of interest to you (similar suppliers tend to be grouped together, some areas are also dedicated to countries or regions so you do get a mix in these areas) and just walk up and down each aisle
Hotels:
If you are cost conscious you need to either book a year in advance or miles outside of the city (taxis then become expensive, if you are in another town, trains may be possible) if you are too far outside you spend most of your time travelling and therefore reduce your time on site
Travel:
The roads get pretty busy around the site at peak times
I believe the trams are free with your medica ticket
The airport is very close to the fair, there is a free shuttle bus that runs
Summary...
Plan everything in advance, manage your time efficiently, if you are not careful you can waste a lot of time
As an exhibitor:
I have never exhibited, all I can add to this is:
- I understand that you have limited control of your location, the "premium" halls I believe are only avaliable to regular exhibitors
- your national industry association may allow you to exhibit on their stand